As we all gear up for the new school year, health officials are busy getting ready to introduce the new H1N1 flu vaccine to the public. It is being reported that the vaccine should be available some time in October. School age children, health care workers, and pregnant women will be some of the first in line to receive the swine flu shots. Many schools around the country will double as vaccination centers, some offering free shots, to make sure as many children as possible are inoculated against the virus.
Schools are also taking extra precautions by encouraging parents to keep their children at home when they are at all feverish. Newsweek reports that schools in Minneapolis have installed tamper-proof soap dispensers in all restrooms to make sure children have the chance to wash their hands.
Though the original swine flu outbreak has been considered relatively mild, government health officials are preparing for the worst. They are considering the possibility that the virus could become more serious and widespread with the onset of winter.
With pregnant women and young children first in line to get the swine flu shot, some people are left worrying about the safety of the new vaccine and whether it has been tested long enough to get effective results. A recent Reuters article discusses some of the concerns people have about the new vaccine.
One of the top concerns is rooted in the public's memory of reports from 1976 when the U.S. government began a massive nationwide immunization against the swine flu of that time. Though the swine flu of 1976 never spread further than a military base, several hundred cases of Guillain Barre Syndrome were reported after receiving vaccinations. Guillain Barre Syndrome is a rare neurological disease that can paralyze a person and in some instances lead to death. More people suffered from this disease than those affected by the actual swine flu.
Do you trust that the new swine flu vaccine will be safe?
Will you be taking any extra precautions this fall to guard against flu?
I would never get this vaccination! Nor would I let my child! I don't even get vaccinated from the regular flu and they don't suggest if for children under 6, since my son is 2 that is also a no go. I realize to prevent him from getting the flu I should get vaccinated but as they say with the swine flu, WASH WASH WASH to avoid contamination!
Working at a hospital has made up my mind majorly on vaccinations. I will have the swine flu vaccination because we see so many sick people daily, it would be stupid for me not too. But I will not only rely on that sole vaccination. I plan to make sure that everything is clean around me as much as possible, by washing my hands and cleaning my desk at work daily. These are little things that people do not do which causes bacteria to spread so quickly.
I will be discussing the vaccine with my childrens peds. and also with my 8 yr old Rheumatogist. My 8 yr old is on meds that surpress her immune system so any flu including the H1N1 is a really bad thing for her. All 3 girls got the flu vaccine last yr and will again the H1N1 maybe be on our list.
"The vaccination has to be FDA approved so the benifits must outweigh the risks" Seriously? Have you seen the list of drugs that were FDA approved that were then recalled because they pose a danger? I trust the goverment less every day. There is no way I'm putting my health or my child's health in their hands.
This vaccine is being sent out without being fully and thoroughly tested. I will not be getting this vaccine and neither will any of my family.
I dont trust the vaccination - it hasn't been around long enough or tested enough. I would refuse to get it and refuse to let my daughter get it.
This whole thing really bothers me. I have two children under the age of 4. My daughter starts preschool this year. I teach in a middle school. And middle schoolers are not the cleanest people around. So the germ fest will be at full force. I don't want to pump my small children with something I hardly know about. Yes, technology has come a long way, but there have been some devastating results from rushing vaccines into the population.
So we all need to vaccinate our children against this if the swine flu becomes as bad as they say it will. I know that there are some that do not agree citing the vaccine may hurt us. The truth is that if the swine flu becomes an epidemic people need to be vaccinated. The vaccination has to be FDA approved so the benifits must outweigh the risks. When those at risk are not vaccinated it allows others to become infected such as when one child does not get there measles vaccination and gives it to an infant who is not old enough to get that vaccination.
I agree with smallangels.
doesnt it seem a little too dangerous to just vaxinate yourself and your children when it couldnt have been tested enough to find the full amount of side effects. I dont even get the regular flu shot for myself. What ever happened to just keeping yourself protected by staying clean, keeping things out of your childrens mouths, and HAND WASHING!!
I am torn on this issue. I hear both good and bad stories about vaccinations, but a lot of the information seems to conflict. I don't have children, but am planning to in the not so distant future and whether or not to vaccinate when the time comes is an issue that I feel like I need to know more about.
I agree with most of the posters, I will not be getting the vax and neither will my children. There are other ways to protect yourself.
I have never nor have my two girls been given a flu shot...however, the "fear factor" with the swine flue had me questioning whether I should or should not...my husband who is a Marine said "hell no" he's not getting it. After reading these posts, I have decided we will take our chances, and like all the other ladies have said...wash wash wash our hands and cover our mouths.
I will not get the swine flu shot & neither will anyone in my family. There has NOT been enough testing on the swine flu vax for me to trust it. We know the side effects from the seasonal flu shot, but the gov't can't tell us every little side effect from the swine flu vax. Simply, there is not enough research done on this swine flu vax for me to be comfortable taking it myself, or having someone in my family taking the vax.
My son has asthma and I am very concerned that he might get swine flu. However, I am not confident in the vaccine this early on. I plan to make sure he washes more frequently and uses hand sanitizer at school.